A letter from Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala to Secretary-General Kofi Annan seeking UN help was handed over at the world body's office in Kathmandu on Monday, Suresh Chalise said.

Monitoring arms is seen as crucial to a free and fair vote as the guerrillas control large swathes of the Himalayan nation and are known to enforce their writ through threats.

"We have requested the United Nations to assist the government of Nepal in the peace process," Chalise told Reuters without elaborating.

Koirala, appointed after King Gyanendra gave in to pro-democracy protests in April, and Maoist chief Prachanda last month agreed to include the rebels in an interim government to oversee elections for a special assembly to prepare a new constitution and decide the future of monarchy.

The interim government and the Maoists also agreed to seek UN help to monitor and manage their armies and arms ahead of the vote. No date has been set for the polls yet.

The vote and the new constitution are seen as a first step toward ending a decade-old Maoist insurgency, that has killed more than 13,000 people since 1996.

Maoist leaders have blown hot and cold over inviting an international agency to monitor arms.

While the rebels initially resisted the move, rebel chief Prachanda in an interview to Reuters last month said both forces should be confined to their respective barracks or camps and be under international supervision.

However, last week he said there was no need for foreign involvement.

There was no immediate reaction from the rebels to the government decision.

Meanwhile, a parliamentary address by Nepali Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala outlining his government's policies and vision for the next year has been delayed because he is ill.

Koirala, appointed in April after King Gyanendra gave in to weeks of pro-democracy protests, will make his speech on Sunday, said House of Representatives speaker Subas Nemwang after meeting Koirala in a hospital.

The 84-year-old politician was admitted on Monday night and is in the intensive care unit of the Gangalal Heart Centre in Kathmandu after complaining of chest problems. Doctors said his condition was stable but he needs to be in hospital for two days.

"We think he will be able to attend the parliament on Sunday and make the historic address," Nemwang told Reuters.

The address is to be the first by a prime minister after the parliament curtailed King Gyanendra's legislative role and stripped him of his control over the 90,000-strong army.

Earlier, the king used to read the statement outlining the government's annual policies and programmes.

Koirala's family says he has problems in the right lung, a chest infection and needs rest.

Koirala underwent prostate surgery in Bangkok last month.

Since his appointment, Koirala has avoided most public events due to his poor health. The swearing in of Koirala, the consensus choice of the seven political parties that organised the pro-democracy protests in April, was delayed a few days because of bronchitis.

Koirala, serving his fifth term as premier, met Maoist rebel chief Prachanda last month and the two sides agreed to include the guerrillas in the interim administration.

That move is seen as a first step toward ending a decade-old Maoist insurgency in which more than 13,000 people have been killed, but prompted a warning of a possible aid freeze from the United States, which lists the Maoists as a terrorist group.